Zijian Wang

Bocconi University
Department of Economics Email: zijian.wang@phd.unibocconi.it
Via Roentgen 1, Mobile: +39 334 228 3820
Milan, Italy, 20136

Education
Bocconi University (Milan, Italy) 2015 – present
PhD in Economics Candidate
Expected Completion Date: January 2021

Columbia University (New York, United States) 2019 – present

Visiting PhD student

University College London (London, UK) 2013 – 2014

MRes in Economics

University of Warwick (Coventry, UK) 2012 – 2013

MSc in Economics (with Distinction)

Central University of Finance and Economics (Beijing, China) 2008 – 2012

BEcon in Statistics (with Distinction),

Research Fields
Macroeconomics, Information Economics, Monetary Economics

Work in Progress
Rational Inattention, Financial Friction and Monetary Non-neutrality

Abstract: This paper explores the interaction between financial friction and information friction when
firms set prices under rational inattention. Facing both nominal aggregate demand shock and id-
iosyncratic productivity shock, firms with binding financial constraint pay weakly more attention to
aggregate shock than unconstrained firms due to strategic complementarity in constrained firm’s pric-
ing decision. Using recent survey data, I find new cross-sectional facts that are consistent with the
model’s predictions regarding firm’s attention towards different macroeconomic variables. Though,
constrained firms have advantageous attention level towards aggregate condition, their price response
to monetary shock is not always faster than unconstrained firms, due to the presence of real rigidity.
Generally, monetary non-neutrality is decreasing with the fraction of constrained firms. However, if
aggregate volatility is sufficiently large, monetary non-neutrality can be amplified as the fraction of
constrained firms. I provide quantitative calibration disciplined by recent survey data to show the
non-neutrality of money under both financial friction and information friction.
Zijian Wang 2

Firm Dynamics, Rational Inattention and Business Cycle

Awards and Scholarships

PhD fellowship, Bocconi University 2015-2019
Excellent Performance Scholarship, Central University of Finance Economics 2011-2012
Excellent Bachelor Dissertation, Central University of Finance Economics 2012

Research Experience and Other Employment

Research Assistant, Prof. Tom Schmitz, Bocconi University (Milan, Italy) 2017
Associate, China Merchant Securities co. Ltd. (Beijing, China) 2014 – 2015

Seminar and Conference Presentations

2019
Econometric Society Winter Meeting , Royal Economic Society Annual Conference (scheduled)
2018 Bocconi PhD Workshop

Teaching Experience
Global Scenarios (Master), Prof. Francesco Daveri, Bocconi University 2018
Advanced Econometrics (PhD) , Prof. Pamela Giustinelli, Bocconi University 2017 – 2018
Financial Macroeconomics (Undergraduate), Prof. Luigi Iovino, Bocconi University 2016 – 2018
Econometrics (Undergraduate), Prof. Massimiliano Marcellino, Bocconi University 2016 – 2017
Monetary Economics (Master), Prof. Roberto Perotti, Bocconi University 2016

Skills
Programming Languages
Matlab, Python
Statistical Languages
STATA, Eviews
Typesetting Languages
LATEX